Gender Codes: Why Women Are Leaving Computing

The computing profession faces a serious gender crisis. Today, fewer women enter computing than anytime in the past 25 years. This book provides an unprecedented look at the history of women and men in computing, detailing how the computing profession emerged and matured, and how the field became male coded. Women's experiences working in offices, education, libraries, programming, and government are examined for clues on how and where women succeeded—and where they struggled. It also provides a unique international dimension with studies examining the U.S., Great Britain, Germany, Norway, and Greece. Scholars in history, gender/women's studies, and science and technology studies, as well as department chairs and hiring directors will find this volume illuminating.

Table of Contents:
Foreword ix Preface xiii Contributors xv PART I: TOOLS FOR UNDERSTANDING 1 1 Gender Codes 3 Defining the Problem Thomas J. Misa 2 Computer Science 25 The Incredible Shrinking Woman Caroline Clarke Hayes 3 Masculinity and the Machine Man 51 Gender in the History of Data Processing Thomas Haigh PART II: INSTITUTIONAL LIFE 73 4 A Gendered Job Carousel 75 Employment Effects of Computer Automation Corinna Schlombs 5 Meritocracy and Feminization in Confl ict 95 Computerization in the British Government Marie Hicks 6 Making Programming Masculine 115 Nathan Ensmenger 7 Gender and Computing in the Push-Button Library 143 Greg Downey PART III: MEDIA AND CULTURE 163 8 Cultural Perceptions of Computers in Norway 1980–2007 165 From "Anybody" Via "Male Experts" to "Everybody" Hilde G. Corneliussen 9 Constructing Gender and Technology in Advertising Images 187 Feminine and Masculine Computer Parts Aristotle Tympas, Hara Konsta, Theodore Lekkas, and Serkan Karas PART IV: WOMEN IN COMPUTING 211 10 The Pleasure Paradox 213 Bridging the Gap Between Popular Images of Computing and Women’s Historical Experiences Janet Abbate 11 Programming Enterprise 229 Women Entrepreneurs in Software and Computer Services Jeffrey R. Yost 12 Gender Codes 251 Lessons from History Thomas J. Misa 13 Gender Codes 265 Prospects for Change Caroline Clarke Hayes Bibliography 275 Index 297

About the Author :
THOMAS J. MISA is at the University of Minnesota, where he directs the Charles Babbage Institute, teaches in the graduate program for the History of Science, Technology, and Medicine, and is a faculty member in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering.

Review :
"This is a very valuable book in dispelling many of the myths about women and computing . . . For anyone interested in understanding why women are not attracted to the computing profession, including teachers and IT managers, this book is highly recommended. It provides an in-depth understanding of how and why we are where we are." (Sex Roles, 2011) "Gender Codes is an important book . . . this is a task in which the IEEE History Center can play a role, and we think our readers can and should as well-they can begin with reading this seminal book" (Bibliography, 1 March 2011) "This book is an excellent introduction to some of the main themes, and there are many more chapters waiting to be written." (IEEE Annals of the History of Computing, 1 April 2011) "Summing up: Recommended [for] all levels/libraries." (CHOICE, January 2011)